text: In November 1997, the International Maritime Organization  adopted new rules covering survivability and structural requirements for bulk carriers of  and upwards. The bulkhead and double bottom must be strong enough to allow the ship to survive flooding in hold one unless loading is restricted.
  Rogue waves present considerable danger for several reasons: they are rare, unpredictable, may appear suddenly or without warning, and can impact with tremendous force. A  wave in the usual "linear" model would have a breaking force of . Although modern ships are designed to (typically) tolerate a breaking wave of 15 t/m, a rogue wave can dwarf both of these figures with a breaking force far exceeding 100 t/m. Smith has presented calculations using the International Association of Classification Societies (IACS) Common Structural Rules  for a typical bulk carrier, which are consistent.
  Peter Challenor, a leading scientist in this field from the National Oceanography Centre in the United Kingdom, was quoted in Casey's book in 2010 as saying: "We don’t have that random messy theory for nonlinear waves. At all." He added, "People have been working actively on this for the past 50 years at least. We don’t even have the start of a theory."
  In 2006, Smith proposed that the IACS recommendation 34 pertaining to standard wave data be modified so that the minimum design wave height be increased to . He presented analysis that sufficient evidence exists to conclude that  high waves can be experienced in the 25-year lifetime of oceangoing vessels, and that  high waves are less likely, but not out of the question. Therefore, a design criterion based on  high waves seems inadequate when the risk of losing crew and cargo is considered. Smith has also proposed that the dynamic force of wave impacts should be included in the structural analysis.
  The Norwegian offshore standards now consider extreme severe wave conditions and require that a 10,000-year wave does not endanger the ships integrity. Rosenthal notes that as of 2005, rogue waves were not explicitly accounted for in Classification Societys rules for ships design. As an example, DNV GL, one of the worlds largest international certification bodies and classification society with main expertise in technical assessment, advisory, and risk management publishes their Structure Design Load Principles which remain largely based on the Significant Wave Height, and as at January 2016, still has not included any allowance for rogue waves.
  The U.S. Navy historically took the design position that the largest wave likely to be encountered was . Smith observed in 2007 that the navy now believes that larger waves can occur and the possibility of extreme waves that are steeper (i.e. do not have longer wavelengths) is now recognized. The navy has not had to make any fundamental changes in ship design due to new knowledge of waves greater than 21.4 m because they build to higher standards.
  The more than 50 classification societies worldwide each has different rules. However, most new ships are built to the standards of the 12 members of the International Association of Classification Societies, which implemented two sets of common structural rules - one for oil tankers and one for bulk carriers, in 2006. These were later harmonised into a single set of rules.